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Commonwealth Secretariat press release

Statement by the Chairman of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on the Harare Declaration at the Conclusion of the Group's Mission to Nigeria

26 November 1996

Dr Stan Mudenge, Zimbabwe's Foreign Minister and Chairman of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on the Harare Declaration (CMAG), made the following statement on Wednesday, 20 November in Abuja at the conclusion of the Group's two-day visit to Nigeria:

"Over the past two days we have had very useful discussions in Abuja. We have had a full programme including meetings with the Head of State, a high-level Nigerian delegation led by the Foreign Minister, Traditional Rulers, the heads of various transitional institutions, the chairman of the National Human Rights Commission and representatives of the five political parties.

We appreciate the frankness with which our queries were responded to and the appointments arranged for us. The Head of State made it clear to us when we paid a courtesy call on him, that our group was free to travel anywhere in Nigeria, including Ogoniland, and see anyone it wished. But the time available to us during this visit did not make this possible on this occasion. Some of us did, however, meet a cross-section of Nigerian opinion, both in Lagos and Abuja, in the course of our normal diplomatic and social contacts and received a number of memoranda.

We particularly valued the presentations made to us by representatives of the various transitional institutions. In the process, we were able to seek and obtain information on the situation relating to human rights and the rule of law, as well as the evolution of democracy in Nigeria. We reiterated the Commonwealth's willingness to provide technical assistance, if requested, to facilitate progress in these areas.

The information we have gathered from these exchanges with Nigerian authorities and others has been extremely useful. This information requires proper reflection and analysis on the part of CMAG as a whole which is expected to meet again early next year. We regret that it was not possible for one member of CMAG to come to Nigeria with us.

We welcome the releases announced yesterday (19 November) of three detained persons, who had been detained without trial and who were among those about whose situations the Commonwealth has been concerned. We look forward to further releases, including the release of all those detained without trial in Nigeria as the review process continues.

At the same time, we regret that we were unable to visit any detainees, including Chief Abiola; it may be appropriate for me to recall, in this context, that Commonwealth Heads of Government themselves called, at Auckland, for the release of these persons.

I believe the talks held in Abuja have been constructive and that the continuation of our dialogue in a frank and friendly manner would be useful to promote the interests both of Nigeria and the Commonwealth.

CMAG will in pursuance of its mandate, remain engaged with Nigeria and seek to have access to the widest possible cross-section of views from Nigeria; this will enable it to report and make recommendations to Commonwealth Heads of Government next year in a manner which is objective and constructive.

On behalf of our delegation I wish to convey our appreciation to our hosts for their warm welcome and friendly hospitality."

Note for Editors:
The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on the Harare Declaration was established by Commonwealth Heads of Government in New Zealand in November 1995 to deal with serious or persistent violations of the Harare Declaration. It consists of Ministers from Britain, Canada, Ghana, Jamaica, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Africa and Zimbabwe.

Issued by the Information and Public Affairs Division, Commonwealth Secretariat,
Marlborough House,
Pall Mall,
London SW1Y 5HX,
United Kingdom.
Tel: 0207-839 3411;
Fax: 0207-839 9081;
Telex: 27678

96/63 26 November 1996

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ISSUED BY THE COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS DIVISION
Commonwealth Secretariat Marlborough House Pall Mall London SW1Y 5HX United Kingdom
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